China has discovered the new genus of the American Mole, the Mole

China News Agency, Kunming, January 15th, China
Kunming Animal Research Institute announced on the 15th that the Institute's Jiang Xuelong task force, in cooperation with Anhui Normal University, found in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the new genus of the American Mole, the new species - the mountain Mole belongs to the Mole. It is the highest known distribution altitude of the American Mole.
The American Mole belongs to the Lactation Gang Mole Section, and now has a total of 4 species of 6 species. With the exception of Gansu Mole, which is scattered in Gansu, Shaanxi and other places in central China, all other species are distributed in North America. But fossil records show that the American Mole once covered North America and Eurasia, containing at least 14 genus. The origin of the American Mole has not yet been determined, but there have been at least three "out of North America" incidents in this group, at least twice through the Bering Strait to East Asia and into China. After the first migration to China, the group retained the remains of Gansu Mole, while the second migration resulted in the extinction of Yanshuella Primaeva and Yunoscaptor scalprum.
April-June 2019, Jiang Xuelong's team collected two samples of the American Mole while conducting a mammal survey in Mot, Tibet. The unique shape and distribution of these two specimens have attracted the attention of the medical examiner. Through detailed morphological comparison and molecular systems analysis, the researchers identified a new genus named: The Alpine Moth.
analysis shows that the moth and Gansu mole are sister groups, and the differentiation time between the two occurs in the middle of the Middle New Life. The rapid rise of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau during this period and subsequent climate change may have led to the differentiation of the two species.
addition, compared to the Gansu Mole, moths retain many primitive features, presumably due to the more stable environment in the Himalayas.
researchers, the Moth is the highest known distribution altitude of the American Mole (3700m). The discovery of this genus is not only of great significance to the study of the migration and evolution history of the American Mole species across continents, but also helps to explore the evolution and adaptation process of small mammals in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.
research was published recently in the journal Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society.